behrcolls@aol.com
st • on
of the week
by Jen Henderson,
assistant news editor
"The war is a little more important •
than basketball at this point. We •
need to support our troops and our •
•
country! U.S.A. Come on and •
raise up! Show your support!" •
Eddie Kremer
Poly Sci, 02
Madigan describes life experiences
by Courtney Straub
health page editor
On Thursday at Soup for the Soul, Maria
Madigan related her life to the movie
"Sliding Doors." Madigan has been at
Behrend for eight years. She spent her first
three and a half years as a student and now
she is the coordinator for Greek Life and
Student Leaders.
Looking back on her life, Madigan
believes that there have been many sliding
doors, meaning that one door you enter can
decide the rest of your life. Things don't
happen in life just because God wants them
to, she said. Everyone makes their own
decisions and God is there to help guide
them through these decisions.
"I think He's a part of your life every
time you make a decision," said Madigan.
Madigan was brought up Roman
Catholic in a small town. The priest at her
church had given most of her family their
sacraments and they all felt comfortable
in their religious community. Then her
priest was transferred and one of the new
priest's missions was to close down the
small church and help build a bigger church
with an adjoining town.
Her parents did not attend the new
church as often, so Madigan began
attending a Methodist church with her
grandparents.
"It was similar in feeling that you still
got everything you wanted out of the
service," said Madigan.
Then the Methodist church asked her to
become an adult member and Madigan's
parents realized they needed to start taking
her to the Catholic Church. This was a
^iaior sliding door in her life.
Senior Salute Days
by Christine Kleck
advertising manager
After four years of hearing, "Where
is our Lion statue?" the Behrend
graduating classes of 2003 decided to
answer that question by creating one.
The graduating members of the Senior
Class Gift Committee for 2003 have
spent their final days at Behrend
planning for the Behrend Lion statue.
With final projects, ceremonies and
celebrations right around the corner, the
members of the spring graduating class
of 2003 are taking every opportunity to
savor the last moments of their college
experiences at Behrend.
While some have a countdown going,
others can't help but look back. Some
will shed tears of joy and relief; others
will shed tears of sadness. It's that time
of year graduation is almost here.
Spring Break is usually the beginning
of the end for graduating seniors' final
days at Behrend as most students can
be heard saying "Its all downhill from
here."
With all of this in mind, Senior Salute
Days will be held in the Reed
Wintergarden on Monday from 10 a.m.
until 6 p.m. and Tuesday from 9 a.m.
until 3 p.m. The two-day celebration is
a time for the Behrend community to
commemorate the spring graduating
class of 2003 as its members begin to
say their goodbyes.
Graduating seniors will have a
chance to pick up their tickets for
commencement, order their graduation
announcements, purchase their cap and
gown, order their class ring and even
make a pledge to their Senior Class
Gift, the Behrend Lion statue.
The hard-working senior class gift
f'r
..,,,,
$ $
"The war.
Elizabeth Atarri
Nursing, 02
"I had just assumed that it was all the
same," said Madigan.
The next sliding door in her life was
deciding what college she wanted to go to.
In high school, Madigan played five varsity
sports and decided to downsize when she
went to college and play only three.
"Sports were my whole life," said
Madigan.
She went to a recruiting camp and did
very well, but then she never heard from
any colleges. When she visited Behrend,
she fell in love with the school and its
basketball program.
During her first volleyball game at
Behrend, she pulled all the ligaments in her
leg and decided that it would be best to
only devote her strength to basketball.
Later she found out that the computers at
the recruitment camp she had gone to had
all crashed. This was another sliding door
because what would have happened if she
had gone to a different college?
"The different sliding doors in your life
really hit you," said Madigan.
Since her first experience at the
Methodist church, Madigan has also
attended a Baptist Church service which
was a real eye opener for her. Also, one of
her best friends is Muslim, so she has also
had the chance to learn about his culture.
The sliding doors in Madigan's life have
helped her to become the person she is. To
her, the doors have been rewarding because
when she looks back on the choices she
has made she is happy with them.
"1 never see her without a smile. She's
somebody who gives evidence of loving
life," said Sr. Mary Drexler, coordinator
for Catholic Campus Ministry.
committee will be on hand during
Senior Salute Days to answer questions
about the lion statue and to accept
pledge cards. There will also be some
great giveaways at the table.
The Behrend Lion, which will be
located near the Junker Center, will
become a permanent reminder of the
class of 2003. It will serve as a symbol
of the pride of Penn State University
for everyone living in the northwestern
Pennsylvania region. Graduating
seniors are currently being asked to
consider making a pledge to the 2003
Senior Class Gift in support of the
Behrend Lion statue.
Ip the past, a donation of the students'
general deposit has been an easy and
painless way for graduating seniors to
give back to their alma mater. All
students create a general deposit at their
time of admission to Penn State. The
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
Senior Class Gift committee members discuss the placement of the Behrend
Lion statue.
NEWS
Friday, March 28, 2003
i',;:).t.„4: 1.: 1 ;1',.i..:ii :,0 i 1'ii''§4:;,..,.)1
"I wish America would
start a war every March
just to interrupt March
Madness."
Grant Yocitim
Telecommunication, 04
Lutz shares unique fiction with campus
by Erin McCarty
news editor
On Thursday, about 50 students and
faculty gathered in the Reed Lecture Hall
for a reading by writer Gary Lutz.
Lutz, who has been published in "The
Quarterly," "Conjunctions," "Story
Quarterly," Cimarron Review," and "The
Random House Treasury of Light Verse,"
has been praised for his unique manner of
writing. His first book, "Stories in the
Worst Way," was recently reissued by 3°
bed press.
"His is definitely an original voice," said
English professor George Looney in his
introductory remarks, commending Lutz's
"sometimes hilarious, sometimes
heartbreakingly beautiful sentences."
Looney found a quote from the sixth
section of Wallace Stevens' "Notes Toward
a Supreme Fiction" to be particularly
appropriate to Lutz's writing.
"'lt must be visible or invisible, — he
quoted. — lnvisible or visible or both: A
seeing and unseeing in the eye. — Looney
went on to say that Lutz's stories have a
way of opening the readers' eyes to things
they wouldn't normally see while blinding
them to the ordinary. His writing, Looney
remarked, "moves us ever closer toward
the idea of a supreme fiction."
Lutz read three fairly long pieces:
"People Shouldn't Have to Be the Ones to
Tell You;" "Waking Hours;" and
"Carriers."
"People" was presented in a mosaic
style, separated into 14 sections. Rich in
detail, it delved into the lives of a father
and his two daughters, focusing
approach
general deposit is reserved by Penn
State as a "financial safety net" until
students graduate.
Seniors can pledge their general
deposit or make an outright
contribution to the Senior Class Gift.
Pledge cards to "leave your mark" on
the college are currently being
distributed to the seniors.
The 2003 Senior Class Gift
Committee encourages seniors to attend
the Senior Salute Days and to make a
difference at Behrend by supporting the
Behrend Lion Statue.
The class of 2003 is at the threshold
of some great and overwhelming
changes, as it will move on in this world
in only a few short weeks. The
beginning of the end is here. Help
celebrate and remember your days at
Behrend by visiting Senior Salute Days,
March 31 and April 1.
"1 watch the war coverage
more. I think the safety ofour
country and other nations is
more important."
Joe Nason
Pre-Pharrn, 02
particularly on the introspection of the
"Waking Hours" was narrated by a man
whose life included learning "how to
bestow awards on undeserving
employees," spending the day with his
young son every week, and coming to the
realization that he is gay.
"Carriers" was narrated by a woman and
described the frustrations she felt in her
marriage to a man who began showing
signs of having homosexual affairs after
the death of their son.
All three stories forced those listenin
PHOTO BY ROB WYNNE / BEHREND BEA
Prose writer Gary Lutz reads from his fiction on Thursday.
Calling all future Quentin
Tarantinos and Kevin Smiths
by Ryan Russell
staff writer
Ever hear of Quentin Tarantino?
Maybe "Pulp Fiction" rings a bell.
Ever hear of Kevin Smith? Maybe
"Clerks" or "Jay and Silent Bob Strike
Back" jog the memory. These two
filmmakers both got their start as small,
independent directors, and went on to
bigger and better things in Hollywood.
And soon, the chance to see the next
Kevin Smith, Tarantino, or even the
next Spielberg, is coming to Penn State
Behrend. Students and fans of
independent films unite, because the
Independent Film Extravaganza is
arriving at Penn State's Reed Building
on April 16.
Students are encouraged to submit
their own films, which can range in
length from five minutes to any
reasonable length.
With that said, almost anything goes.
If you feel the need to parody some of
the scenes from "Pulp Fiction,"
"Memento," or even "My Big Fat
Greek Wedding," creativity is
encouraged, and requested. There is no
subject matter that is considered off
limits and no tale too gruesome or
comedic to be shown.
This is one of the few times that an
event is occurring on the Behrend
campus where the students are the
center of attention, so why not take a
chance? Make a five, 10, or 20 minute
film to show. Think of the feedback
you can get, both from the audience
members and from the other directors
The Behrend Beacon
"Both."
John Markley
Computer Engineering,oB
to pay close attention, as each sentence was
in itself a work of art.
"I compose less like fiction writers and
more like poets," said Lutz in a brief
question and answer period following the
reading. "I can't go on to the next line until
the first line is perfect. I try to offer
something in every single sentence; that
makes the stories kind of dense."
The final speaker in this year's Creative
Writing Speaker series is prose writer Amy
Hempel, who will read her work in the
Reed Lecture Hall on April 17 at 7 p.m.
in attendance. That alone should merit
making a short film and putting all of
your friends in it. If nothing else, it's a
night of laughing at you and some of
your friends on film.
But what are all your friends going
to do? Here are some ideas that you
can base a short film on: Idea One:
Rhode Island is neither a road, nor an
island. Discuss. Idea Two: What if
every swear word in a "Die Hard"
movie was replace by the words
"smurf' or "Stay-Puff Marshmallow
Man?" That idea could be comic gold.
Idea Three: Make fun of the "Million
Dollar Staircase." Just because
everyone else does. Idea Four: Ever
hear about the rivalry between
communications and engineering
majors? Sounds like a dramatic re
enactment of "West Side Story"
waiting to happen.
Those are ideas. If you have another
that is even better than those given, by
all means, make the movie and be sure
to submit it. And speaking of free, if
you attend the extravaganza on April
16, not only is admission free, but free
popcorn and refreshments will be
provided.
The deadline to submit a film is April
7, however. If you have an old Alcohol
Awareness video, or a video project
you did for a class lying around, and
you want to show it to the public, then
email Mathew Bocian at
mbbl46@psu.edu, and let him know
that you are the next Steven Spielberg
or Woody Allen.
Page 3